Meet the members: Notepad

AW Monthly Showcase

Founded at the beginning of 2017, and launched in October, Notepad is a strategic brand studio. They define, build and grow brands for startups and new ventures that challenge the status quo.

They’ve helped an inventor launch the world’s first self-heating mug, built a brand for the UK’s newest challenger in the meat supply industry, and helped a global sports brand to launch a new sub-brand across Europe. We talk to Notepad founder Naeem Alvi about the company and making Alpha Works their home.

What sets you apart? What’s your USP?

We connect senior professionals from the strategy and design industry with fledgling businesses, and by keeping our overheads low, we do it for budgets early-stage businesses can afford.

Why Birmingham?

Before founding Notepad, I worked at branding and advertising agencies across London and Oxford. While they were both good fun, the sense of innovation and entrepreneurialism in Birmingham can’t be beaten. On top of that, there’s something different going on every day in Birmingham, the people are down-to-earth, and the airport is literally a bike ride away.

Why does Alpha Works work for you?

Alpha Works is a great place to launch and build a business. It’s a truly supportive community of like-minded professionals that provides endless motivation, delicious coffee and free fruit.

The Alpha Works team also did an incredible job in organising and managing Notepad’s launch party.

Beyond these perks, it also really suits the Notepad business model as our teams tend to operate remotely, which means we can all drop in and out when needed.